It seems to be true. PSA, the French parent of Peugeot, announced this morning
that the double shift producing the 206 model would dwindle to one shift after
July 2006, and production would end before mid 2007.
The Peugeot 206 is in a very competitive market both in the UK and Europe, and
PSA wasn't able to continue an advantageous agreement with the trade unions
in Coventry. Jaguar also left completely, including moving the headquarters
at Browns Lane to a location closer to Birmingham, but that had more to do with
Ford wanting to consolidate the three separate locations assembling their
cars(Its
now one plant near Birmingham for the S-Type, XJ sedan, and new XK, with a
separate
plant near Liverpool for the X-Type).
I visited the Oxford/Cowley plant just last Tuesday where the BMW Group
assembles
the MINI, and they're EXPANDING. With the help of a trade union, they assemble
600 cars in a 22 hour period, seven days a week. I don't yet have the total
numbers for MINI's built last year, but the the U.S. received roughly 40,000
cars, and the UK bought 44,000 themselves. The expansion is a 100 million pound
investment to produce a larger model with a six-cylinder, due out in 2007.
Some of you may remember that the site where the MINI is now assembled at Cowley
was the location where Pressed Steel was and Morris Minor assembly took place,
employing upwards of 26,000 persons. The MINI assembly plant employs about 4,600
persons, plus the engineering department staff.
For those of you who get British Marque, I'll have more on the MINI plant in
an upcoming issue.
|